National Republican., 1887-01-24


Witt Talmage's sermon to-day was preached
at the reception OF 30S new members, max
ing the communicant membership OF the
Brooklyn Tabernacle $3.50. II was O day
memorable in the history Of this church.
The reverend DOCTORS text was Isaiah: TX.
s--Who are these that Uy as a cloud, and as
the doves to their windowsp He preached
as follows:
When God would set fast q beautiful
thought He plants It In tree; when He
would put It afoat lie fashions It into
fish, when he would have 1t glide the air
lie molds II into q bird. There is to
many of us complete fascination in the
structure and habits Of birds. The black
bird floating like flake Of darkness
through the sunlight; ithe meadow-lark
with head Of fawn and throat OF velvet
and breast OF gold the red ilamingo flying
from the forge Of the setting sun; the
pelican, white and black, morning and
night tangled In its wings. They seem not
more Of earth than heaven, ever vacillating
between the two. No wonder that Audi.
bon, with his gun, tramped through all the
American forests In search OF new speci-
mems. Geologists have spent years In
finding the track Of birds claw in the
new red sandstone. There is enough of
Gods architecture IN snipe's bill
or grouse's foot to confound all the uni
versities.
Musicians have, with clefs and bars, tried
to catch the sound of the nightingale and
the robin. Among the first Things that a
child noticesi is a swallow at the caves; and
grandfather goes out with a handful Of
crumbs TO feed the snowbirds. TIE Bible
is full OF pathological illusions. The
birds OF the Bible are not dead and stuffed
like those OF the museum, but living birds,
with fluttering wings and plumage. "Be-
hold the fowls OF the air." says Christ.
"Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle,
and though thou set thy nest among the
stais, thence viii bring thee down." ex-
claims Obadiah. "Gavest thou the goodly
wings to the peacockE" says Job. David
described his desolstion by saying: ~ am
like pelican of the wilderness; l am like
an owl Of the desert; watch, and am as a
sparrow upon the housetop." "Yea, the
stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed
time; and the turtle and the crane and the
swallow observe the time Of their coming;
but my people know not the judgment of
the Lord.n So says jeremiah. And In the
text Isaiah looks ahead and sees the gather
ing Of many people unto Christ and the
church, and 1t makes him think Of flock
of pigeons alighting on their coop, and all
at once trying to get In at the window of
the coop, and he cries cut: "Who are these
that fly as a cloud, aud as the doves to their
windows?"
This is one of the memorable days OF the
Brooklyn Tabernacle. On other Sundays
we drop the net; to-day we haul 1t In. On
other days we send out the invitations for a
kings party; to-day we sit at the banquet.
On other days we fight the battle; now we
claim victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ. Ye who have toiled, and contrib
uted, and prayed for the success Of this in
stitution, take unto your souls the grand
satisfactions Of this hour. To you, o, men
and women is fulfilled the promise: "They
that SOW In tears shall reapfn JOY" Wake
up, o, church Of God and bring garlands
and music, and let us celebrate our 'har-
vest home.n
Oh, this mercy of God am told II Is
an ocean. Then l place on 1t four swift
sailing crafts, with compass and charts,
and choice rigging and skillful navigators,
and tell them to launch away and dis
cover for me the extent Of this ocean. That
craft puts out in one direction and sails to
the north; this to the south; this to the east;
canvas and sail ten thousand years, and one
day come up the harbor of heaven, and l
shout to them from the beach "Have you
found the shore ~ And they answer "No
shore to Gods mercy !" Swift angels, dis
patched from the throne, attempt to go
across it. For a million years they fly and
fly, but then come back and fold their
wings at the foot Of the throne and cry !:
''No shore! No shore to Gods mercy i"
Mercy Mercy sing it, ! preach It,.
] pray 1t. Here l find a man bound hand
and foot to the devil, but with one stroke
fall off and he is free forever. Mercy |!
Mercy Mercy There is no depth It can
not fathom; there is nc height 1t cannot
scale; there is no infinity 1t cannot compass.
When persons apply for membership into
any society the question, is asked "Who
are they and where do they come fromG"
And as this multitude Of people to-day pre-
that we should ask, "Who are these that
come as doves to their windows?" They
are captives whose chains have been broken;
they are soldiers who have enlisted for a
thirty years. war. They are heirs of
heaven.
They come as doves to the windows, first,
because they fly low. The eagle darts up
as II to strike its beak into the sun. There
are birds that seem to dwell under the caves
OF heaven; you see them as little specks
against the sky, so far off that you cannot
guess the style Of their plumage or the
shape of their bodies. They float so far
away that If the hunters gun be discharged
Not so with the doves or pigeons; they
never take any high excursions. They fly
around your roof and alight on the fence
and seem to dislike great attitudes. So
these souls who come to Christ and to His
church to-day fly low. They ask no great
feet Of Christ. They are not ashamed to be
called beggars for mercy; they are willing
to get down on their knees, and to crawl
under the table, and to pick up the crumbs
of gospel provision. There were days
when they were proud and punctilious and
inexorable and puffed up, but not now.
The highest throne of earth could not tempt
Mary away from jesus feet. Stoop, Oh,
pardoned soul, II thou woulds't enter
heavenl A high look and proud heart God
hates. Fly low. 1t is mercy that thou
.canst fly at all. Remember all the years
of thy sin; thy days of youthful wandering;
thy days of manhood transgressions; thy
siDs-dark, brooding deathful-sins against
tfy, soul; against thy Bible; against thy
In one of the benevolent institutions OF
Europe, where the destitute are provided
for, the newcomers have their photogl aphs
taken while In rags before they are washed,
go that they may always have In the picture
reminder of the degradation from which
they were lifted; so, In this book, God keeps
before thee picture Of thy former desti,
tuition and raggedness of soul. Fly low.
1t is an offended God before whom thou
comest. Thou deservest His wrath. He
scattered the one hundred and eighty-hye
thousand Of Sennacherib's host In a night.
He abhors sin. He will judge the nations.
Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty.
Fly low.
A thousand years ago an emperor planted
rose bush from which roses are plucked
to- day. At the foot of the cross nearly
nineteen centuries ago rose was planted
which blooms to-day; stoop down, II thou
wouldst pluck 1t. o for more Of the child
like spirit 1 rejoice in the belief that
those who come to Christ to-day come
aware Of their sins and their wants, and
have learned how to fly low.
Again. These persons who come to-day
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